The Inherited Thirst of Mexico


  • Photographer
    Nicole Franco
  • Prize
    Honorable Mention
  • Company/Studios
    Nicole Franco | Photography
  • Date of Photograph
    2013-2014
  • Technical Info
    digital capture
Story

Agua que no has de beber, déjala correr. Water you are not going to drink, let it run. -Mexican proverb

In the high desert mountains of Guanajuato, Mexico, at the heart of the country, the people thirst.
Their thirst is an inheritance of the land. The small rural community of Guerrero sprang into conception
where groundwater was once abundant underneath the arid terrain. But, decades of mining, erosion, overgrazing
and pollution have left what remains highly contaminated and now, a constant struggle for accessible clean water.

Now, pozos or wells that were once generous are exhausted. The people now harvest rainfall to help replenish the
levels of groundwater. But the rains come in abundance only once a year. What water can be collected needs to be
distributed amongst families and livestock. Between the daily labors that the land commands, eyes gaze towards
the sky waiting and praying for a generous rain.

Today, the scarcity of water in Mexico is no longer an isolated issue. In 2011 the “Right to Water” was realized as
a human rights issue and implemented into the Mexican Constitution. The amendment claims, every person in
Mexico is entitled to affordable, accessible, and safe water.

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